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How to Make Claw Holes in a Shirt

Brenda Priddy

You can simulate the look of a clawed shirt with a few simple sewing tools. Use a picture of real claw marks from a bear, cat, lion or other clawed animal as a guideline when making the shirt to give it a more authentic appearance. Knit fabrics such as T-shirts and other soft fabrics produce a more realistic look.

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Use the picture of the claw marks as a guideline for where to place the marks. Estimate the distance between each claw on your chosen animal. Measure the distance between the four parallel claws and the one claw below the others. Use these measurements when making the marks on the shirt.

Mark the placement of the claw marks onto the shirt with tailor's chalk. Place a small mark where you want each hole to go. Make some marks larger than others. Make a few large marks to make it look as if the animal tore its paw across the shirt in an attack.

Poke the seam ripper into the edge of one mark. Pull the seam ripper all the way through the hole until the fabric catches in the crook of the seam ripper. Pull the seam ripper across the mark quickly to tear through the fabric. Take care not to pull so hard that the fabric tears beyond your mark. Cut on the lines with sharp scissors if your fabric is resistant to this method.

Cut through large lines with scissors. Cut out a tiny hole for some claw marks, then cut out a larger pieces of fabric for others. Try to imagine what the shirt would look like if it really did get clawed and use that as a guide during cutting. You can also roughen up the edges to make them look more realistic by pulling at the fabric with the seam ripper after cutting with scissors.

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Things You'll Need

Tailor's chalk

Picture of claw marks

Ruler

Seam ripper

Scissors

References

Resources

About the Author

Brenda Priddy has more than 10 years of crafting and design experience, as well as more than six years of professional writing experience. Her work appears in online publications such as Donna Rae at Home, Five Minutes for Going Green and Daily Mayo. Priddy also writes for Archstone Business Solutions and holds an Associate of Arts in English from McLennan Community College.